John Broadwood & Sons Ltd

Style, Pursuits & Pastimes

John Broadwood & Sons was established in the year 1728, and has held a Warrant for the supply, maintenance and tuning of all kinds of pianos to the Royal Households since the reign of George II. We believe that we are in fact the oldest of the Warrant Holders.

Originally, our piano manufacturing was carried out in a series of small workshops in Soho, London. Today, our offices and works premises are based at the delightful Finchcocks, an elegant Georgian mansion at Goudhurst, in the heart of the beautiful Kent countryside. Visitors to the area are always welcome to call in and see our craftsmen and women at work in the outbuildings to the rear of the House.

For most of our firm's history, a connection has been maintained with the original Broadwood family; and the company's extensive archives, from which we can provide detailed information of the provenance of most of our pianos, still survives. Today, the company is owned by the Laurence family, who have been associated with the Broadwoods since 1787, mainly in a technical capacity. The present directors are Dr Alistair Laurence, Guy Laurence and Per Anders Lohne (Norway). The company secretary is Sam Laurence.

Over the years, our firm has constructed pianos for some of the world's most eminent pianists and composers, including Haydn, Beethoven, Clementi, Chopin, Liszt, Elgar and Holst.